Spare Me Some Time
by the-literalist
Summary: Alfred Jones is as poor as they get, living homeless on the streets. He is the type of man that high-paid businessman Arthur Kirkland would never spare a passing glance, but that's about to change. USUK (human AU)
1. Chapter 1

**Spare Me Some Time**

by The Literalist

Watching the feet of a thousand people walk on that sidewalk every day became Alfred's favorite pastime, his only pastime actually. He was fascinated taking in the different kinds of shoes that were worn each day, the speed at which each pair of feet was walking, how the number of feet would increase at certain points in the day and taper off when it was less crowded.

Yes, Alfred Jones would stare at these feet the passed by him, even though the owners of those feet never even so much as spared a glance in his direction. After all, he was just a young homeless man in battered clothes sitting against the brick wall of a bank, the same bank that displayed his account balance as $0 a few months prior. The same bank that refused to let him take out any more loans to pay for his cramped, shabby apartment. The same bank that had no mercy on him after he had lost his job and could not find any other source of employment. With no money and no help, Alfred had been forced to live on the streets of New York City at the ripe age of 26. He had taken whatever he could from his apartment including some food and blankets, knowing whatever he would have to face living outside would not be forgiving or pleasant.

He hated the thought of begging the passersby for money, so he spent every day the past few months leaning against the brick wall observing the feet of his fellow city-goers pass by him in a rush. Most people were uncomfortable with the homeless so they made sure to never get close to him or look at him, and in all honesty Alfred didn't blame them. He was sure by now he must have looked like a ratty mess of dirt and grime.

Yet even with his current quality of living being so low, Alfred remained the optimist he had always been. People watching was actually a lot of fun, if you really thought about it. And he still had some granola bars to last him for a little while longer, which was pretty nice. And the wall wasn't too uncomfortable if you placed a big blanket between you and the bricks. Yes, all in all, it could have been a lot worse for Alfred Jones.

* * *

One day, a pair of shoes Alfred had never seen before walked briskly past him, and for some reason they took him by surprise. The shoes were the shiniest he had ever seen, as if the man wearing them had them professionally shined just minutes before heading out on the street. The speed the man was walking was so desperately fast that Alfred had no doubts the man was clearly late for something important. First day at work perhaps? Ah well, Alfred would never know for sure the reasons for the speedy city-goer in the shiny black shoes passed by him in such a hurry that morning, but for the first time since he became homeless he actually had the desire to see what the man looked like, other than just his shoe preference. He made it his mission to catch sight of the man's face the next time he got a glimpse of those expensive shoes again.


	2. Chapter 2

Well, that could have gone better. His first day on the job and he had already managed to make a fool out of himself twice. But no matter, Arthur Kirkland was a strong individual who could handle any obstacle, or at least that's what he kept telling himself. Nevertheless, gathering up the shambles of his pride, Arthur strolled out of his new office building with his head held high. He strived to do a better job at work tomorrow to prove himself to his boss and co-workers, and he most certainly would not make the same mistakes he did today.

With the sun setting below the outline of tall New York skyscrapers, the sky took a warm orange hue which Arthur found relaxing amongst his present thoughts. As he began his long trek back to his newly acquired apartment, he glanced down at his shoes to notice a few scuff marks, no doubt an obnoxious reminder of his bad day. His scowl deepened considerably and the people walking past him tried to stay away from his chilling aura. Arthur Kirkland was never known for friendliness or sociability anyway, so he was used to people staying away from him. Even at his home in England, the community knew him as a no-mercy, hard headed man. Now that he was in America, he supposed he may have blended in with all the selfish New York entrepreneurs. Growing up in a troubling and unstable household, Arthur learned the hard way he had to take care of himself since no one else would. He liked to think his upsetting childhood had influenced him to become a successful businessman.

He was already exhausted from his long day at work that this walk back home added extra stress to his already aching feet. Eventually he would have to use the subway to get to work because he wasn't sure how long he could keep this up, but the NYC subway system was so complicated when he had tried to decipher it, so he decided walking would be easier for now. He watched the sidewalk as he walked along to make sure he avoided the blackened gum stuck to the ground and the bouts of litter that rolled along. The New York streets were truly decrepit, Arthur thought. He just hoped his new shoes wouldn't become completely ruined after today; he had just had them professionally shined the day before, after all.

Not taking his eyes off the ground, he did not notice the pair of bright blue eyes studying him as he briskly walked by.


	3. Chapter 3

Alfred had waited all day to finally see the face of the man with the expensive black shoes. After deliberately checking each pair of shoes the rest of the day, the same expensive shoes from earlier came into view, and although they still had their shine, the shoes were no longer as flawless as they had been that morning. A bit of scuff marks and dirt marred the perfection. Must have had a rough day, Alfred figured, he quickly took in the rest of the man's outfit before he disappeared down the street. The man was wearing a nice black suit with a green tie and gray vest underneath, fancy. Alfred then looked at the man's face since he had been desperately curious the entire day. And wow, he was blown away. There was a frown on the man's face and a crease between his (pretty big) brows. Alfred was mostly only able to see the man's profile, but he could still see a glitter of green eyes that were illuminated by the setting sun. Overall, the man was completely handsome and radiant and professional and damn, he didn't even glance in Alfred's direction. Not even once. It seemed the man had a mission to stare at the ground intently as he walked. Oh well, maybe Alfred would be fortunate enough to see the man again tomorrow! He grew excited about the prospect, probably the only thing he had been excited about during the past few months. Alfred continued to watch the feet of all the New Yorkers after the man had long passed by; he had nothing else to do, anyway.

* * *

He woke up to the usual sound of sirens, horns, people, etc. Even though he had blankets around him, the harsh sidewalk was beginning to have pressing damage to his back and sides. Sitting up, he cracked a few bones to appease his aches, and started to get comfortable so he could enjoy his daily people-watching, including hopefully seeing that man again from yesterday.

Sure enough, around 10 minutes later, he caught a glimpse of the shiny black shoes (which looked like they'd been cleaned off since yesterday). His heart sped up a bit as his excitement grew, maybe today he'd make eye contact with the man! But alas, the man's pace was very quick once again, and it appeared as though he was going through his wallet for something important. As he passed Alfred, there was a glimpse of green falling onto the sidewalk out of the wallet. Alfred's eyes grew wide and he quickly crawled a few places in front of where he sat in order to grab the thing that had fallen, taking one glance at it Alfred realized it was a 50 dollar bill. Uh oh, he tried to get onto his shaky feet fast enough to catch the man but by the time he looked down the street, the crowd was too busy to see through. Perhaps the best plan of action was to wait until the man walked back down the street later that day, he decided. Alfred hadn't stood up in a very long time so he could feel his leg muscles teetering uncomfortably as he tried to support himself back to his wall. He let his back slide down the rough bricks until he was once again in a sitting position. Tucking the $50 into his worn-out jacket pocket, he began to imagine how thankful the man would be once Alfred returned the money he accidentally left behind. Maybe the man would realize he lost the money and would search everywhere in vain! Maybe he would be so upset that the money was gone until Alfred presented it to him later that day! Yes, Alfred would be the man's hero; he couldn't wait until the sun went down!

* * *

Arthur knew the card MUST be in his wallet somewhere. As he rushed down the street to make it to work on time, he let his fingers search through each fold of the wallet, constantly trying to find the card; the business card he had received yesterday of the client he was required to call today. If he didn't settle the agreement with the client than he would surely be in deep trouble with his boss, and he vowed he would not have _another_ horrible day at his new workplace. Finally! He grasped the card at last, which had been folded up and crumbled a bit in the scuffle, but at least he found it. And right before he walked into his office building too! Maybe today would be a good day after all.


	4. Chapter 4

After patiently (and agonizingly) waiting for 9 hours, the sun began to dip down behind the New York buildings, which meant _he_ would be coming soon! Alfred grabbed the $50 out of his pocket so he could give it to the man when he came by. Soon enough, the man came into view! Alfred smiled wide and began his struggle to stand up.

"Excuse me, sir! Excuse me!" Alfred called out as the man drew closer, but the man's reaction was not what he expected. Instead of slowing his pace to see what Alfred's inquiry was, the man glanced at him, scowled disapprovingly, and made to walk around him in a greater radius. Alfred's smile disappeared as he realized the man would not stop.

"Wait, hold on! Stop!" He tried to follow the man but his legs refused as he collapsed back against the bricks behind him. The man still did not break his stride as he avoided Alfred completely and blended in to the crowd. Alfred's heart clenched and he sighed in defeat at the dirty sidewalk. That had not gone as he hoped, but perhaps he was being too naive. Of course the man would not give him a moment of his time since he had no idea Alfred wanted to return his money. The man probably thought Alfred was a beggar and a creep. Oh boy, this would be more difficult than he thought, but he would just have to try harder to get the man's attention tomorrow.

The next day, Alfred wanted to feel prepared by the time the man walked by that morning, but unfortunately the man decided to go to work 15 minutes earlier than he had the past two days. Which meant Alfred was not in his ready position to jump up and get the man's attention. Surprised, Alfred yelled "Hey, excuse me!" a little too late and even though the man turned his head to glare at Alfred quickly, he was already gone by the time Alfred got the rest of his planned opening line out: "I have something you dropped yesterday!" Grrrr, no matter, Alfred would make absolutely sure he was ready for the man that evening.

* * *

Okay here he comes, Alfred thought since he was vigilantly aware of the exact moment the man came into view later that day. He had made sure to be prepared this time, after all. He stood up so fast he became dizzy and held his arm out to stop the man in his tracks.

"Hi! I've been trying to tell you something!" Alfred exclaimed happily.

The man halted and pierced Alfred with his green-eyed glower. "Bloody hell! I would think it's obvious how much I DON'T want to be around you. Why the hell do you think it's acceptable to keep calling to me every time I pass you by? I have places to be that are indefinitely more important than standing here talking to you. And if it's not perfectly clear by now, I have nothing I wish to give you so kindly fuck off and quit bothering me!"

Alfred was shocked.

"Oh...um...yeah I-I guess, I'm really sorry for bothering you. I j-just thought..." Alfred stood in disarray before slowly putting his enclosed fist between the two of them and opening his hand gently to display the money he had on his palm. So much for being the man's hero. "Yesterday I saw that you dropped this out of your wallet...so I just wanted to give it back to you. I'm sorry, that's all I wanted to say."

Now it was the man's turn to be surprised, and he looked down to Alfred's hand to see the money, $50. He gaped. "That's mine?" He asked, sounding distant.

"Uh..yeah! I just thought, ya know, you'd want it back." Alfred replied meekly.

The man lifted his head to look at Alfred more clearly. "Aren't you homeless?" He squinted his green eyes a bit as he observed Alfred's features: tangled blond hair, dirty skin, stubble across his chin, worn out clothes.

"Yeah I am, how come?"

"Well why didn't you keep the money for yourself? $50 would have gotten you some good meals. It looks like you haven't eaten decently in a long time."

Alfred's posture deflated a bit, "Well yeah, but it's your money, not mine. I didn't earn it. Of course I had to return it to you."

"Ah. Yes. Right. Thank you." Confused, he took the money out of Alfred's palm and placed it in his jacket pocket. He felt a little too disoriented at the moment to fish his wallet out to put the money in there. "Don't you want a reward or something at least? I still cannot fathom why you, a homeless man, wouldn't want to keep the $50 for yourself."

"I don't want a reward! I was doing what any nice person would do in that situation...I would feel horrible spending your money on myself. And I don't need food every day, I'm okay hahah..." There was an uncomfortable grimace on Alfred's face that he tried to manage into a sincere smile, but the conversation was not what he expected it'd be at all. After a tense few seconds of silence Alfred said, "Well I hope you have a good day!" Then he wandered to the wall and sat back down at his spot putting his head into his hands.

The man stood there for a little longer just watching him solemnly before uttering a "thank you, you...too." And then Alfred heard the man's shoes click against the sidewalk as he walked away, a much slower pace this time.


	5. Chapter 5

Arthur lay awake in bed that night for hours, staring up at the dark ceiling of his roomy apartment. No matter what he tried he couldn't manage to fall asleep; his thoughts were muddled with images of that homeless man from earlier that day. A homeless man finding $50 and returning it to its owner? It had to have been a trick...or something. No person was that selfless and kind, right? _GAH_, Arthur rolled to his side to face the equally dark wall.

Ever since he was a boy, he had only encountered people who only looked out for themselves. In fact, he could not recount seeing a single act of strong compassion or altruism from anyone in his family or immediate circle of acquaintances. Especially as an adult, he found that reliance and trust in others for anything was hard to come by. How can he trust anyone when they're only concerned with their own wellbeing? Which is why...that homeless man was the first person Arthur ever met that completely took him by surprise. The man clearly needed the money more than Arthur did and yet he returned it. Why? Could people actually be that kind?

He checked his bedside clock for about the fourtieth time that night. A big red 2:47 am greeted him. He groaned with exasperation, at this rate he would never fall asleep... how did the homeless man fall asleep every night on that hard concrete? Surely it couldn't be comfortable. He must have a sore back by now; who knows how long he had been out there.

_UGHH_ Arthur was exhausted, he never had this much trouble falling asleep in his entire life. He pulled the covers more secure around his body, shivering slighly; it felt like there was a slight draft in his room... but that homeless man must be even more freezing, Arthur thought. Outside in the frigid nighttime air, trying to huddle up in the few blankets he had. The man would undoubtedly get sick, especially when the winter months approached.

_Okay okay it's time to stop thinking, and start sleeping. If I'm not able to focus at work tomorrow, my boss will be furious. And then my co-workers will think I'm incompetent. It seems like I'm on their good side for now so I can't jeopardize that. Eventually I'd like to get to know some of them better, possibly form a friendship or two... I wonder if the homeless man has any friends. It must be quite lonely. He must have had some friends before he became homeless, right? I wonder if they know he needs help._

_STOP STOP STOP_, Arthur tried to cut his thoughts off before they got carried away. Sleep now, sleep. Another quick glance at the clock showed 3:01 am. Good God, Arthur was exhausted. He silently began the struggle to slip into unconsciousness once again and leave his thoughts about the homeless man away, but unfortunately for him it wasn't until another hour went by that he was finally able to get the rest he desperately needed.


End file.
